Report: Trump asked Comey pledge loyalty to him over dinner

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James Comey, who was recently fired by President Donald Trump, can allegedly trace his downfall back to a single conversation he had with Trump in which the former real estate mogul asked Comey to pledge loyalty to him.

A law enforcement source who was told the story by Comey told CBS News’ Pat Milton that Trump had invited Comey to dinner at the White House in January. Comey had been unsure about the dinner because he did not want to appear too “chummy” when they were in the middle of investigating Trump’s Russia ties, but he ultimately decided that he could not refuse the president of the United States and attended the dinner.

–Trump’s firing of FBI director Comey: What you need to know–

During the dinner, Trump said that he needed Comey’s loyalty, and Comey promised that he would be “honest.” When Trump asked if that meant “honest loyalty,” Comey responded, “Yes, you will have that.” According to the source, Comey meant that he would always be honest with the president.

However, Trump told a different story, citing the dinner as one of the times that Comey had assured the president that he was not being investigated, according to CBS News.

“I think he asked for the dinner, and he wanted to stay on as the FBI head,” the president told Lester Holt. “And I said I’ll, you know, consider and we’ll see what happens.”

Deputy Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders also denied the story of Trump asking for loyalty, saying, “We don’t believe this to be an accurate account. The integrity of our law enforcement agencies and their leadership is of the utmost importance to President Trump. He would never even suggest the expectation of personal loyalty, only loyalty to our country and its great people.”